HomeMy WebLinkAboutA004 - Council Action Form dated April 26, 2022 ITEM: 38
DATE: 04/26/22
COUNCIL ACTION FORM
SUBJECT: TEXT AMENDMENT TO THE STANDARDS FOR FLAG LOTS
BACKGROUND:
William Fedeler of H&B Properties, LLC, is seeking to subdivide his single "General
Industrial" lot at 2108 East Lincoln Way into two "General Industrial" lots, one being at the
rear of the property, as described in his request (see Attachment A, Applicant's Request).
The property owner requested a text amendment to allow for a flag lot with a 25-
foot wide "access strip" for GI zoned properties where currently the standard
requires a minimum of 35-feet. City Council authorized the property owner to apply for
such a text amendment.
The owner requests the change due to the location of
an existing building on the lot and the related building Flag
setbacks that preclude him from meeting the 35-foot Lot
standard. The proposed rear lot would meet the
minimum "General Industrial" Zone Development
Standards included in Table 29.901(3) with a 25-foot
frontage, but would not meet Section 29.401(c) Flag
Lots, that states a flag lot "access strip" shall be no less Street
than 35-feet in width.
The City's standards apply to all types of lots regardless Flag Lot Diagram
of zoning, even though lot width and street frontage
requirements do vary within base zoning districts.
A flag lot is defined in Section 29.201(119) as "any lot having less frontage on a public
way than is typical for the block in which the lot is proposed and is configured such that a
narrow access corridor extends from the point of frontage to a larger portion of the lot (the
"rear lot")." The description of flag lots and associated requirements are included in
Section 29.401(c) Flag Lots. Notably, only one flag lot can be created from a lot of record.
The General Industrial zoning district is unique in that the minimum street frontage
requirement is only 25-feet, which is less than the flag lot street frontage requirement.
Narrow minimum lot width requirements typically come into play with cul-de-sac
lots, lots with alley access, or attached (zero-lot line buildings). The lot width
requirements have been in place since 2000, where prior to 2000 there was not a
lot width standard for GI zoning.
In this case, applying the flag lot width standard results in a greater amount of lot width
for the access flag than required for a standard lot within this zone. This is the opposite
of what is typical. Usually, flag lots have a reduced width from the standard lot
requirement. Within the General Industrial zoning district, there are currently 10 properties
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configured as flag lots: five properties have a 25-foot access corridor and the other five
have a 35-foot access corridor. The majority of these were developed prior to 2000.
Lot are frontage and width requirements designed to create minimum spacing of lots and
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allow for minimal functional requirements. A 25-foot lot width and street frontage width
creates potential conflicts with other development standards for access and landscaping
that may not allow for full use of a property if it cannot meet City Codes. When a site's
sole point of access is only a 25-foot width, it may not meet standards. For example, a
two-way driveway would require a minimum of 24 feet of width, which would not allow for
adequate area for landscaping or sidewalk access if it was required. When sites have
shared access or alternatives access points the lot width requirement may not be a
concern.
Reducing the street frontage requirement for all flag lots within the General Industrial
zoning district to 25-feet would standardize lot width minimums for both standard lots and
flag lots in the General Industrial zoning district. However, staff is concerned that a
blanket allowance of 25-feet width for all flag lots within the General Industrial
zoning district would preclude required pedestrian access along with other site
improvement requirements. A 25-foot wide flag lot could accommodate a typical
driveway with a 24-foot width, as long as no sidewalk access is required. Sites used for
outdoor storage that do not have a primary building would not require a sidewalk and
could conform to minimum access requirements. Otherwise, a sidewalk connection is
required by the Section 29.404 from the street to the main entrance of the primary building
which would not typically fit within the 25-foot minimum width requirement.
PROPOSED TEXT AMENDMENT;
Mr Fedler proposes a simple change to the standard to except GI zoned lots from the 35-
foot access strip requirement. In response to this proposed change, staff has included
changes to the definition of a flag lot to improve its clarity. This change would apply city-
wide, not just to GI lots.
However, staff recommends language to conditionally allow for the reduced width
only when easements are included that are necessary to meet sidewalk and other
access requirements.
Proposed text changes included in Attachment C include staff's recommendation for
conditional reductions of flag lot access strip width in GI zoning districts. The definition of
flag lots is also amended to provide better clarity regarding typical widths of a lot.
PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION:
The Planning and Zoning Commission met on April 6, 2022, to consider the proposed text
amendment. The Commission voted 6-0 in favor of recommending the reduction of the
flag lot access width in the General Industrial Zoning District as recommended by staff
and represented by Attachment C.
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ALTERNATIVES:
1. Approve on First Reading a text amendment to reduce the minimum flag lot access
width with conditional easement requirements in the General Industrial zoning district,
as included in Attachment C.
2. Approve on First Reading a text amendment with language that reduces the minimum
flag lot access width in the General Industrial zoning district to 25 feet with no
conditional easement language, as proposed by the applicant in Attachment A.
3. Direct staff to prepare modifications to the proposed text amendment and return for
Council consideration at a later date.
4. Do not approve the proposed text amendment.
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDED ACTION:
The proposed text amendments clarify requirements and expectations of the flag lot
requirements. Although the proposed text amendment is expected to have minimal impact
and affect only a handful of properties across the City that are zoned General Industrial,
the amendment will further enable taking "advantage of infill sites within the existing
urbanized area to increase both the efficiency and quality of the urban environment," a
principle of the Growth & Land Use chapter in the Ames Plan 2040. In some cases, the
text amendment may help with infill when a property can benefit from some form of shared
access and not solely rely upon minimum lot width.
The change primarily facilitates the use of land that does not include buildings due to the
constraints of a narrow lot width in being able to comply with access requirements. The
text amendment would continue to require all other zones with flag lots to have a minimum
35-foot-wide access strip. Staff has also included an adjustment to the definition of flag
lot to create greater clarity as well.
Therefore, it is the recommendation of the City Manager that the City Council adopt
Alternative #1.
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Attachment A - Applicant's Request
Text Amendment to the Zoning Ordinance
Checklist Items for 2108 E Lincoln Way
March 15, 2022
A written explanation of the reasons for the zoning text amendment. Mr. Fedeler is seeking to
subdivide his single"General Industrial" lot at 2108 East Lincoln Way into two"General Industrial" lots,
one being at the rear of the property. The rear lot will be a flag lot in order to provide frontage on East
Lincoln Way. The flag lot will include a 25-foot wide"access strip"from East Lincoln Way due to the
location of an existing building on the lot. The rear lot will meet the minimum "General Industrial"Zone
Development Standards with a 25-foot frontage, but will not meet the General Development Standards
that state a flag lot"access strip" shall be no less than 35 feet in width. The newly created lots will meet
all zoning standards, including building setbacks for the existing structure on the site,with the exception
of Section 29.401 of the existing zoning code.
A general description of the property(ies),zones,and/or areas that will be affected by the zoning text
amendment. Article 4, Development Standards,of the current code requires a Flag lot to include an
"access strip" no less than 35 feet wide for its entire length from a public street. This section of the code
applies to all zones. All zones,with the exception of the General Industrial (GI)Zone, have a minimum
lot frontage of 35 feet or more. Therefore,the current code requires flag lots in the General Industrial
zone to be wider than standard lots in the same zone. The reduction of the minimum width of an
"access strip" from 35 feet to 25 feet in Article 4 for the General Industrial zone would eliminate the
discrepancy between these two code sections. The text amendment would require all other zones with
Flag lots to have a minimum 35 feet wide access strip,which aligns with the minimum dimensional
standards set forth in their respective code sections.
A written explanation of the consistency of this zoning text amendment with the Land Use Policy Plan.
The Land Use Policy Plan states that the General Industrial areas shall involve sitting in designated areas
where overall use and appearance requirements are less restrictive. This text amendment would allow
lots in the General Industrial zone to have less restrictive "access strips"compared to other zones in the
city.
Existing ordinance language for consideration. Section 29.401(c)(ii) The "Rear Lot" shall include an
"access strip" no less than 35 feet wide for its entire length, providing access to and from a public street.
Proposed ordinance language for consideration. Section 29.401(c)(ii) The "Rear Lot" shall include an
"access strip" for its entire length, providing access to and from a public street. The width of the access
strip shall be no less than 35 feet in all zones,except General Industrial which shall be no less than 25
feet,which is the minimum frontage requirement within that zone.
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Attachment B — Location Map
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LOCATION MAP
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Attachment C
Zoning Code:
Proposed Text Changes for Flag Lots
Staff proposes the following changes to the Zoning Ordinance. Text to be removed is shown with
strilEe thr^ R''; text to be added is underlined.
Sec. 29.201 Definitions
(119) Lot, Flag means any lot
the b'eGk an whiGh the lot us proposed andconfigured such that a narrow access
corridor extends from the point of frontage to a larger portion of the lot (the "rear lot")
where the width of access strip is less than the required width of a lot.
Sec. 29.401(c) Flag Lots. Flag lots may be created only if they are in accordance with
the following requirements:
(i) Only one flag lot, consisting of a "front lot" and a "rear lot," may be created from
a lot of record.
(ii) The "Rear Lot" shall include an "access strip" no less than 35-feet wide for its
entire length, providing access to and from a public street. However, within
General Industrial the width of the access strip may be reduced to 25-feet if
easements are provided to allow for necessary vehicular and pedestrian
access.
(iii) For flag lots that are proposed to be created in residential zones, both the "front
lot" and the "rear lot" that are created after the effective date of this ordinance
shall have an area that is equal to 10,000 square feet or 150% of the lot area
for the zone in which the flag lots are proposed to be created, whichever is
greater. In all other zoning districts both the "front lot" and the "rear lot" shall
conform to all minimum lot area and other dimensional standards applicable to
the zone in which the lots are located provided, however, that the "access strip"
serving the rear lot shall not be included in computing the minimum lot area for
the "front" and "rear" lot.
(iv) (iv) The front property line of the rear lot is deemed coincident with the rear
property line of the front lot. (v) The front setback of the "rear lot" and the rear
setback of the "front lot" for flag lots created in residential zones shall be 1'/z
times the distance of the setbacks that are established for all other lots in the
same residential zoning district.
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ORDINANCE NO.
AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE MUNICIPAL CODE OF THE CITY
OF AMES, IOWA, BY AMENDING SECTIONS 29.201(119) AND
29.401(c)(ii) THEREOF, FOR THE PURPOSE OF ALLOWING
REDUCED ACCESS STRIPS IN GENERAL INDUSTURIAL ZONES;
REPEALING ANY AND ALL ORDINANCES OR PARTS OF
ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT TO THE EXTENT OF SUCH
CONFLICT;AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
BE IT ENACTED,by the City Council for the City of Ames,Iowa,that:
Section One. The Municipal Code of the City of Ames, Iowa shall be and the same is hereby amended by
amending sections 29.201(119)and 29.40 1(c)(ii)as follows:
"Sec.29.201 Definitions
(119)Lot,Flag means any lot having less fientage an a ubli,way.L...n is ty..ieal f.the blee.in..hieh the lot is
proposed nd4s-configured such that a narrow access corridor extends from the point of frontage to a larger portion
of the lot(the "rear lot")where the width of the access strip is less than the required width of the lot.
Sec. 29.401. LOT CONFIGURATION,BUILDING COVERAGE, FLOOR AREA RATIOS, AND HEIGHT
EXCEPTIONS.
(1) Lot Configuration.
(c) Flag Lots.Flag lots may be created only if they are in accordance with the following requirements:
(ii) The "Rear Lot' shall include an "access strip" no less than 35-feet wide for its entire length,
providing access to and from a public street. However, within any General Industrial (GI) zone,
the width of the access strip may be reduced to 25-feet if easements are provided to allow for
necessary vehicular and pedestrian access.
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Section Two.All ordinances, or parts of ordinances,in conflict herewith are hereby repealed to the extent
of such conflict,if any.
Section Three. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage and publication as
required by law.
Passed this day of ,
Diane R.Voss,City Clerk John A.Haila,Mayor